Rotary engine.



No. 645,|32. Patented Mar. l3, I900. M. J. ROBINSON.-

BOTABY ENGINE.

. (Application filed Nov. 29, 1899.)

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheot l.

ll" IHHHIIIIHIHH m l l ll l l ljlllllllllllllllllilllllllllllllflmlMINIMUM lllllllll IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIHIIIIHHllllllIHllllflllllllllflllllllllllllllIHIIHHE? Wflgcsscs 1133291015 No.645,|32. Patented Mar. l3, I900. M. J. ROBINSON.

ROTARY ENGINE.

A lication fi1ed Nov. 29, 1899.]

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

f 0 V w w m: scams PETERS cu, Pnorouma. wuummow, n. c,

No. 645,|32. Patented Mar. l3, I900. M. J. ROBINSON. ROTARY ENGINE.(Application filed Nov. 29, 1899.1

.3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

m: scams r EYzls c0, mom-Una, WASHINDYQN. l7. 6

UNITED STATES PATENT rrrcn.

MAJOR J. ROBINSON, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

ROTARY ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 645,132, dated March13, 1900. Application filed November 29, 1899. Serial No. 738,721. (Nomodel.)

citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county ofLos Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and usefulRotary Engine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to fluid-pressure engines in general, and moreparticularly to that class known as rotary engines, and it has for oneobject to provide a construction comprising a rotary piston which willbe operated by the expansive force of steam and in which, moreover, thepower of the engine may be easily and quickly changed, a further objectof the-invention being to so construct and arrange the parts that theywill be cheap of structure, in which the friction will be reduced to aminimum, and in which, moreover, the movable parts will be securelypacked against the escape of steam.

In the drawings forming a portion of this specification, and in whichsimilar numerals of reference designate like and corresponding parts inthe several views, Figure 1 is a side elevation showing the completeengine with the throttle-valves omitted. Fig. 2 is a section'on line 2 2of Fig. 3, with the disksupporting spiders in place. Fig. 3 is a centralvertical section of Fig. 1, part being shown in elevation. Fig. 4 is adetail .elevation showing the shaft of the engine with the pistonmounted thereon. Fig. 5 is a side elevation showing one of the spidershaving a series of the disk, elements of the piston mounted thereon.-Fig. 6 is a detail view showing in section one side of the'cylinder witha packing strip therein. Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the flexiblepacking strip or sheet.

Referring now to the drawings, the engine comprises a cylinder 10,having heads 11 and 12, fixed in its ends, these heads beingsubstantially disk-shaped and having their central portions extendedoutwardly, as shown at 13 and 14, and provided with bearings for theshaft 15 of the engine. The cylinder is supported upon a bed 16,comprising side pieces, the upper ends of which are arc-shaped toreceive the peripheries of the extensions of the cylinder-heads.

The shell of the cylinder 10 is formed in two parts 17 and 18, each ofwhich is areshaped and somewhat less than a semicircle.

At the ends of these cylinder-sections are portion 24, which liesbetween the uppermost lugs 19 and 20. The are of the outline of thisportion of the plate has a greater radius than the central opening ofthe plate, and its center is in vertical alinement with the center ofthe cylinder and so positioned that a continuation of this arc-shapedoutline is substantially tangent at its lowermost point with thecurvature of the opening 23. The opposite edge of thisupwardly-continued portion of the plate is outlined by a short are ofgreat radius and is reentrant. The lower portion or extension 25 of theplate is similar in every respect to the upper extension and terminatesin a narrowed end 26, which lies between the lowermost lugs 19 and 20.One of these plates 22 lies against the inner face of each of the headsof the cylinder, and between these two outermost plates are disposed, inthis instance, three additional plates 27, 28, and 29, the end portionsof the several plates being thickened, as shown in Fig. 3, resulting inthe formation of interspaces 30. Uponreference to Fig. 2 it will be seenthat with this structure and arrangement of plates there is a'passage atone side of the cylinder which tapers from the lowermost point thereofupwardly, while at the opposite side there is a second and similarpassage which tapers from the uppermost portion tothe lowermost,

these passages being shown at 32 and 33, respectively.

Upon the shaft 15 are mounted two spiders 34 and 35, each of which hasthree equidistaut arms, and mounted in these arms, which are disposed inalinement correspondingly, are arbors 36, 3 7, and 38. Upon each of thearbors are journaled four disks 39, 40, and 41, respectively, and whichdisks are disposed ICO ends of the plates 22, 27, 28, and 29 are clampedbetween the lugs 19 and 20 through the medium of the bolt 21, andbetween the majorou terface of each extension of the plates and theadjacent lug there is clamped the extremity of a packing-sheet, onepacking-sheet 42 having an end clamped between the uppermost lug 19 andthe adjacent ends of the plates, while the other packing-sheet 43 has anend clamped between the lowermost lug 20 and the adjacent ends of theplates. These packing-sheets are of such length as to extend around theinner periphery of the cylinder from their points of attachment verynearly to a diametrically-opposite point and v are of such thicknessthat they completely till the interspaces between the outermost pointsof the disks 39, 40, and 41 and the inner face of the cylinder, thedisks when rotating with the shaft 15 acting to hold the packing-sheetstightly against the inner surface of the cylinder. These packing-sheets42 and 43 are of flexible material and are formed, preferably, of anouter layer 44, of belting or rubber packing material, and an innerlayer 45, consisting of any desired number of thin and flexible sheetsof metal, so

that while they will sustain the more flexible material of the outerlayer they will permitit to bend to an extent sufficient to conform tothe outlines of the plates 22, 27, 28, and 29 and the disks.

Through the lowermost lug 20 is formed a steau1-inlet opening 46,communicating with a feed-pipe 47, while in the uppermost lug 20 isformed an exhaust-opening which communicates with an exhaust-pipe 48. Afeed-pipe 49 communicates through the uppermost lug 19 with the passage32, while the exhaust-pipe 5O communicates through the lowermost lug 19with the passage.

In operating the engine of the present invention steam may be admittedto the passages 32 and 33 through the pipes 46 and 49 simultaneously,and supposing that the parts be in the position shown in Fig. 2 thesteam will expand and will press the packing-sheets inwardly, as shown,and then in exerting pressure through the packing-sheets against thedisks 40 and 41 will push them to the left, causing the shaft 15 torotate, while the disks will have rolling engagement with the platesupon the inner faces of the packing-sheets. Pressure against the disks41 will continue until the disks 36 have engaged the sheet 43 andpressed it over the inlet-opening 46, at which time the passage of steamthrough the pipe 47 will cease until the disks 36 have passed beyond theinlet-opening, after which the steam will press the packing-sheet up andbehind the disks 36 and will expand and move the disks to follow thedisks 41. The same operation takes place at the uppermost inlet from thepipe 49, it being understood that as each series of disks passes theexhaust-opening the steam in the rear thereof will flow outwardly.

With the above construction it will be seen that either one or both ofthe steam-supply pipes may be operated and that either the entire poweror half the power of the engine may be utilized when desired, themomentum of the parts acting to carry the disks across the inlet-openingwhen only one-half the power of the engine is utilized.

Upon reference to Fig. 7 of the drawings it will be noted that the sideedges of the packing-sheets are notched, as shown at 51 and 52, and inthese notches are arranged expansible packing-strips 53 and 54, which bytheir expansive action closely impinge the heads of the cylinder andprevent leakage of steam, as will be readily understood.

It will be understood that in practice a spider with any desirednumberof arms maybe employed to support a greater or lesser number ofseries of disks and that various other modifications in the structuremay be made, both with regard to material and proportion, withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention.

It will be noted upon reference to Fig. 2 of between the disks 40 andthedisks 39 increases as the disks are rotated about the shaft 15. Inthis manner the surfaces of both the disks 39 and the disks 40 areemployed to rotate the shaft 15iinstead of employing a single surface ata time, as is customary.

What is claimed is 1. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder, a shaft inthe'cylinder, a tapered passage in the cylinder,a pressure-receivingbody adapted to traverse the passage and project there into to varyingextents, and means for supplying pressure to said body.

2. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having a shaft and providedwith a tapered passage, means for supplying pressure to the passage, apressure-receiving body adapted to project into the passage to Varyingde= grees, a flexible sheet adapted to lie against the wall of thepassage and the pressure-receiving body, and means for supplyingpressure to the passage.

3. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having a shaft therein, platesdisposed in the cylinder and separated from the walls thereof by taperedinterspaces forming passages, a flexible sheet in each passage adaptedto lie upon the plates at one side of the passage, and pressure-receiving bodies adapted to proj ect into the passages and in engagement withthe sheets, said bodies being adapted for movement longitudinally of thepassages to vary their degrees of projection.

4. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder having a shank concentrictherewith, a plurality of pressure-receiving bodies mounted upon theshaft and rotatable therewith,plates within the cylinder and havingcurved edges eccentric to the cylinder and forming tapered passages,flexible sheets fixed to the plates at the minor ends of the passages,and means for admitting fluid under pressure to the minor ends of thepassages.

5. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder, a plurality of plates disposedin the cylinder and separated by interspaces, said plates havingcurvilinear outer faces and separated by interspaces, a'shaft in thecylinder, spiders mounted upon the shaft, arbors carried by the arms ofthe spiders,disks rotatably mounted upon the arbors, flexible sheetsfixed in the cylinders and adapted to lie upon the edges of the platesand of the disks, a steaminlet communicating with the cylinder betweenthe wall thereof and the sheet, and a steam-outlet.

6. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder, a plurality of plates disposedin the cylinder and separated by interspaces, a tapering steam-passagebetween the plates and the periphery of the cylinder, a shaft in thecylinder, rotatable pressure-receiving bodies carried by the shaft andadapted to successively pass into and out of the passage, a flexiblesheet fixed in the cylinder and adapted for engagement with the plateand the pressurereceiving bodies, said sheet lying in the passage, andsteam inlet and outlet openings communicating with the passage.

7. A rotary engine comprising a cylinder, plates disposed in thecylinder and separated by interspaces,tapering passages between theedges of the plates and the inner wall of the cylinder, a shaft mountedin the cylinder,

spiders fixed to the shaft, arbors mounted in v the arms of the spiders,rotatable disks carried by the arbors, a flexible sheet in each passagefixed to the cylinder, said sheet being adapted to lie upon the edges ofthe plates and of the disks, a steam-inlet communicating with thenarrowed end of each passage, and a steam-outlet communicating with thebroadened end of each passage.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

- MAJOR J. ROBINSON,

W'itnesses:

ANNA J. ROBINSON, h/IAUD HAZZARD.

